A Lily By Any Other Name
by Drollittle
Summary: Lily was talented, she was pretty, and she was kind-hearted and friendly. She would never love the dark, greasy boy in the corner. Would she?
1. First Impressions

Disclaimer, etc.

oOo Snow, a Boggart, Daisies, and Sacrifice. oOo

Tony Dolohov had grown up with his mother, Nadia Rosier Dolohov. Getting by had never been easy, but they had worked hard, growing and selling potions ingredients like knotgrass, scurvy-grass and peppermint. They had taken care of each other, and with the exception of that horrible winter with his father, they had lived happily enough.

That winter had been when Tony was six. A gaunt, scowling old man had cracked out of the air like lightning in their kitchen, and demanded their gratitude and loyalty. He had transported them to a snow-bound, solitary town, so far north that the sun didn't dare to rise.

Then three Aurors had come and re-arrested Father. The one Father tried to curse was named Potter, and although Potter had seen to it that Nadia and little Tony were returned safely to their own old life, Nadia had seemed terrified of him.

Tony had gradually learned why. Father was a Death Eater: evil, an enemy of everything good. Harry Potter had defeated the Dark Lord and become a revered Head Auror who worked to root out evil in the wizarding world. He might pity them, a poor squib mother and her little boy, but they would have to keep their heads down in a world that hated the name Dolohov.

oOo

Now Tony was on a train to his first year at Hogwarts. He had left his tearful mother at the front of King's Cross Station because she didn't want to come in, had promised to write often, then made his own way to platform 9 3/4. On the train he had found room in a compartment with another lonesome boy, a second year named Umar who had a wart on his forehead and a slight greenish tinge. Maybe the train was making him sick.

"What is Hogwarts like?" Tony asked.

Umar shrugged.

"What house are you in?"

"Hufflepuff."

"Oh, that's cool."

"Not really." Umar said absently.

Silence.

They both watched out the window for a while. Umar took out a tunafish sandwich and ate it, then a large whole cucumber, and then two pumpkin pasties. Apparently, sick as he looked, his appetite was not suffering. Then he took out "Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2" and started reading it. Tony followed suit, taking his Potions book from his suitcase.

When a lady came through with a trolley of snacks, both Umar and Tony declined.

"D'you bring lunch?" Umar asked.

"No."

"Oh. I already ate mine."

Tony had seen that. He was hungry, but he was used to being hungry once in a while. He asked, "Do we eat when we arrive at Hogwarts?"

"Yup."

When will we get there?

Umar shrugged.

Then there was chatter in the aisle. Girl's faces peered in.

"They look like first years." The girls agreed.

The door slid open. There were four, maybe five girls crowded in the aisle. The redhead in the front smiled.

"Hi! Are you first years?"

"I am." Tony smiled back nervously. Umar just turned back to looking out the window.

"We are trying to meet everyone in our year. I'm Lily Potter."

"I'm Adrianne Edgecombe."

"My name is Lucy Weasley."

"Lizzie Fudge."

"Alberta Peasegood."

Tony nodded. He was sure the only name he would remember was Lily Potter. She was so friendly and confident, radiant. He told himself there was a chance she was not the daughter of The Harry Potter, but he had the sinking feeling that she must be.

"It's nice to meet you." He said. "How long do you think it is until we get to Hogwarts?"

One of the girls said, "My mum said the train arrives at around sunset, before dinner."

"What's your name?" Lily asked.

"Tony...um...and this is Umar."

"Tony what?" Another girl asked.

He looked at the wall, wishing he could escape, grasping for a way to change the subject, but finally muttered, "Tony Dolohov."

Everyone was quiet. Then a couple of the girls behind Lily whispered, "Let's go!" And they were gone.

"As in the death eater Dolohov?" Umar asked bluntly.

"Yeah, he's my father...but I'm not like him! At least, I don't think I am."

"You into dark magic?"

"No!"

"Then you're fine." Said Umar with another shrug.

"I guess I'll be sorted into Slytherin, and everyone will hate me." Said Tony resignedly.

"They'll especially hate you if you're in Slytherin. Slytherin kids are all scared of anything labeled evil; they protect their reputation like it's a million galleons."

Reputation. That was one thing Tony would never have. He had never cared too much before when he was focused on helping his mother, and he did his best to shrug it off now. If he stuck with Umar, he supposed he would learn to get good at shrugging.

oOo

In spite of his discouraging thoughts, Tony was enthralled by the castle. It was majestic, sparkling, and warm. If none of the other first years being led to the great hall by Professor Longbottom became his friends, at least Tony would have a magic castle to explore. Maybe he could talk to the ghosts and the portraits.

In the great hall the first years were called up one by one. The A, B, and C names passed too quickly, and then the moment came when Professor Longbottom said, "Dolohov, Antonin."

The whole room went quiet. Walking up to the sorting hat felt like wading through thick mud. Tony risked glancing out at the hall and regretted it; there was a frown on every face. He looked down again. The professor took a small step back as Tony approached. Did even he find Tony fearful and disgusting?

Tony picked up the tattered hat and put it on.

_"Ah, here is something different." _Said the voice of the hat_. "Where do you belong, Mr. Dolohov? Your parents both went to Durmstrang, hmm... But your grandfather Rosier was in Slytherin."_

"_Please not Slytherin."_

_"Slytherin is not so bad these days, but you are right...it is not the house for you. I sense that the extent of your ambition is to live peacefully with those you care about. You are polite. Intelligent...but not exceptional. Protective, which may give you courage under pressure...but..."_

"HUFFLEPUFF!" The hat shouted at last.

Tony stood up. There were sighs of relief from three of the tables. One blonde boy in Slytherin actually laughed, but Tony's own house looked rather unwelcoming. He certainly didn't want to sit in the front where there was space reserved for first years, so he headed toward an open spot a little further back. The girl next to it shifted on the bench to close the space, and he scanned the table desparately. At the very back, Umar sat alone. Tony practically ran past the whispers of "...death eater...Azkaban break-out...ought to be at Durmstrang...needs to wash his hair..." to sit by the one person who at least tolerated him.

Tony didn't pay much attention to the rest of the sorting, until Professor Longbottom called, "Potter, Lily!"

Once again all attention was on the front. Lily's hair shone in the candlelight as she confidently took the steps up to the sorting hat. Professor Longbottom beamed, and nodded toward the little stool as if it was her throne.

"GRYFFINDOR!" The hat cheered, and the rest of the hall cheered with it. A black-haired boy in the middle of the table next to Tony's started a drumming on the table, which was taken up by the rest of the Gryffindors, until Lily gracefully sat down and Professor Longbottom raised his hand to quiet them.

She was amazing.

"Who's amazing?"

"What? Did I say that out loud?"

"Yup. The Potter girl?"

Tony nodded wistfully. "...but she would never like me."

"That's prob'ly true." Agreed Umar. "You're almost as ugly as me, and I have a gramma who's a hag. But, you never know."

oOo

Tony's first year felt long. He wrote to his mother every day, tellingly her about the castle, the portraits he talked to, and what he was learning. He didn't mention that he was lonely. The other Hufflepuff students weren't all bad; several of them seemed to pity him, and a few even announced to him officially that they didn't blame him for having an evil father. Still, he was only comfortable with Umar. Umar being a second year left Tony with no real friends in his classes or in his dormitory.

Lily sat in the front of their double potions class, and occasionally said hello to him. She called him Tony, instead of Dolohov like the other Gryffindors called him, but that didn't make up for the glares her friends gave him whenever he looked at them.

oOo

In their second year Tony decided that Professor Longbottom must like him after all.

The Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors had Herbology together and Longbottom assigned everyone seats with a partner from the other house, "so you learn to work together with someone new," he said. Tony sat with Lily. That was a dream come true not only because she was kind and pretty, but also because Herbology was Tony's best subject. If it weren't for the insurmountable differences between their parents, and the other students watching him like a bomb that was about to go off, he would have been completely content.

Liam Finnigan and Lizzie Fudge, in particular, sat behind them and considered it their duty to protect the daughter of Harry Potter from the revenge of the Death Eaters. Today they were talking loudly about Finnigan's experience as a beater in Wee Flyers Quidditch and about Lizzie's connections in magical law enforcement.

Tony ignored them as he and Lily began to trim their potted flutterby bush.

"Flutterby flowers are pretty in the pictures I've seen from my Aunt and Uncle's wedding. Have you ever seen them in flower?"

"No," Tony said as he clipped the end off a softly fluttering branch that was growing out in an odd direction, "but the illustrations do look nice. It says the buds darken before it blooms."

"These buds aren't dark. I guess we won't see them bloom." She said and clipped another few leaves. The bush shuddered in protest, and Tony agreed. He didn't really think those ones had needed to be clipped. He had noticed a few times that Lily was inclined to over-trim the plants, but he didn't tell her so.

He looked closely at some buds. "They do have a darker shade around the edges, look."

They brushed shoulders as she leaned close to look. Tony fluttered like the bush and stepped away.

"You're right!" she said, "I wouldn't have noticed. How much longer until they bloom then?"

"Maybe twenty years."

Then Tony noticed that Lily was about to clip off a branch that held three of the roundest buds.

"Don't clip there!" He said urgently, and reached to move her arm away, but she pulled back, startled.

"Stay away from her, Dolohov!" Finnigan yelled suddenly, knocking over his own plant as he leaped up. He fumbled for his wand, and then pointed it at Tony. "You leave her alone or else—!"

Professor Longbottom strode over to them. "What is going on?" He demanded.

Finnigan spoke first, "Dolohov was about to attack Lily, Professor!"

"No he wasn't," Lily countered, "he was just telling me not to clip part of the flutterby bush."

Longbottom turned to Tony. "Mr. Dolohov?"

Tony was so embarrassed he could hardly speak. He simply pointed to the stem where Lily had been about to cut. "This branch, sir." He said softly.

"That branch certainly needs to stay. Mr. Finnigan, I think you overreacted rather aggressively. Twenty points from Gryffindor, and make sure you clean up that spilled potting soil."

Finnigan made a face. "But Professor, do you think it's a good idea to have Lily paired with Dolohov? I mean, _Dolohov_...and _Potter_..."

Tony studied the scuffs on his shoes, feeling his face get hot.

"Yes I do think it's a good idea, for one thing because when it comes to plants, Miss Potter has a careless tendency and Mr. Dolohov is more observant."

Longbottom left them, and Finnigan went for a dustpan, still eyeing Tony suspiciously.

After class Lily told her friends to go ahead, then she waited until everyone had left, and she walked back to the castle with Tony. She told him Liam Finnigan wasn't all bad, he was probably just scared. Tony told her it was alright, he understood how the son of a wizard who had done such terrible things would put people on edge. Then they talked about Herbology until they reached the front hall. He had a hard time meeting her eyes, but he was happy to be with her.

For the rest of that year Lily walked with Tony after each class in the greenhouses.


	2. Fears

"This is Tony, uh? The friend?"

"Yup."

"He looks normal. Maybe a bit thin and greasy...but bacon is thin and greasy, too, isn't it..."

Ms. Grymmion held out a chunk of cabbage to Tony, which he realized was her hand, so he shook it.

"It's nice to meet you, Ms. Grymmion."

"Nice. Nice. Let's go home then." She said.

"See you next year, Umar." Said Tony, and with a nod Umar walked away after his mother.

Tony hefted his trunk. Around him students were saying their have-a-good-summers to each other and rushing to their families. He spotted Lily and her brothers jumping off the train with a bunch of Weasleys.

"There they are!" shouted James, the fifth year, pointing to a group of grown-ups further down on the platform. Among mostly red-heads a man with dark hair and glasses stood out. Lily's Father. Harry Potter.

Tony began to hurry toward the portal wall. Then he heard Lily's voice.

"Just a minute, I want to say goodbye to someone!"

Tony walked faster, but she was not carrying her trunk and caught up to him.

"Tony! Is your mother here?"

"She's waiting outside. I hope you have a really great summer, Lily."

Tony was carefully avoiding looking in the direction of her family. He was sure they wouldn't be happy about Lily's choice of aquaintance and he didn't want to see their looks of disgust.

"We will! We are going to Japan; Al has been studying Japanese."

"I thought you said he was studying Sanskrit."

"All of the above." She laughed. "He's kind of crazy. Come, you should meet my parents!"

Tony shook his head quickly. "I need to go. Bye!" He picked up his trunk again and turned away.

"Tony," she sounded hurt, "you don't have to be afraid of them. I promise they won't..."

Tony didn't look back.

oOo

The next year Herbology was with Ravenclaw, so Tony's abilities seemed about average, but he still enjoyed the plants. Potions and Care of Magical Creatures were his next best subjects. He found that with the wand-work in Charms and Transfiguration he needed a lot of practice. That must have come from his mother, who could brew a potion but whose old cherry wand had sat unused on her dresser until she finally sold it to pay for Tony's school things.

Defense Against the Dark Arts was also difficult, perhaps because when Professor Fenwick made her rounds helping students practice, she skipped over Tony. Unfortunately, this was the class Hufflepuff shared with Gryffindor in their third year. Lily Potter was the star. The day that Fenwick had brought in a feisty little Pogrebin for them to practice blocking with the Protego spell, Lily had instead driven it out of the classroom with a beautiful reindeer patronus.

Whether it was because he rejected meeting her family at the station, because he was an embarrassment in her favorite class, or because he still wouldn't presume to talk to her unless she talked to him first, the friendship they had in Herbology last year was lost. It seemed that everyone in their year competed for Lily's attention, and she gave more than a fair bit of it to Liam Finnigan.

oOo

No longer one of the youngest students at Hogwarts, Tony found himself the object of not only disgust and suspicion from older students, but also abject terror from the younger ones. A trio of first years in his own house had a habit of squeaking and running whenever he came in sight. Unexplained and annoying things had been happening: itch powder in his bed sheets, his ink bottle dumped out on his homework, a frowny face cut into all his socks.

He was sitting writing a letter to his mother in one of his favorite rarely-used corridors, when a small form jumped around the corner and shouted, "colloshoo!"

Tony looked up. It took him a moment to realize that his shoes were now stuck to the floor. Two more students emerged behind the first with their wands out and trembling.

"Um...hi?" Tony said.

"hymenopt!" Said the boy in front. Tony felt a prick on his arm. "_hymenopt_!" The boy repeated louder and this time it was like a wasp had stung Tony's collarbone.

"Whoa whoa! What is going on?"

"We've been practicing hexes, and-and we can fight you now!"

"I don't want to fight you."

"_hymenopt_!" The kid shot in reply, stinging Tony's shoulder, and one of his friends added, "_locomotor wibbly!"_ making Tony's legs shake. He was glad he was sitting down, but it was still extremely uncomfortable, and if that little bugger did one more...

"_Hymenopt_!"

As the sting hit his cheek Tony imagined the boy's ribs pushing inward, squeezing and twisting...but no sooner had the thought crossed his mind than Tony felt sick. He threw his wand down and shook his head.

"I don't know who you are but I am not going to hurt you. Leave me alone."

"You d-don't know who I am?

"No."

"Wilhelm. Will Wilhelm... _Wilhelm_!" He emphasized. "Don't you recognize it?"

"No."

The boy was shaking almost as much as Tony. Then he turned and ran off, followed by his friends.

Tony had to take his feet out of his shoes, then wobble on hands and knees over to pick up his wand and perform finite incantatem.

oOo

At dinner during the last week before the Christmas break a paper airplane landed on Umar's salad. Umar picked it up and unfolded it.

"Oh...this is prob'ly for you." He said. "Sorry."

It was a page torn from a book. The superscript identified the book as Wildest and Worst Wizards of the 20th Century. 

The text continued from the previous page,

...stunned by Filius Flitwick and taken directly to Azkaban. During the early period of ministry reform when Dementors were removed and the new system was in development, he escaped twice: first in 2007, caught in South London by Harry Potter and Hawkes Hawlish; and again in 2013, caught in Siberia by Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley and Nina Calhoun.

Known Victims (including muggles):

Tony's head reeled. There were more than a hundred names here, that magically scrolled slowly along the page, categorized into Murdered, Tortured, Captured, Injured, Imperiused.

...Gideon Prewett, Fabian Prewett, Benjy Fenwick...

Tony understood why Professor Fenwick kept her distance.

...Remus Lupin, Alice Longbottom, Frank Longbottom...

Tony looked up at Professor Longbottom to see the professor drop a forkful of potatoes on his robes. He smiled good-humoredly and wiped it off. Tony almost burst with admiration for a man with simple under-spoken courage and goodness.

A name under 'Captured' had been circled. Ernest Wilhelm.

Guilt stung Tony like dozens of hymenopt curses. How many people here were related to someone on this list of victims? What was he doing in this hall full of innocent people? Antonin Antonovich Dolohov, son of Antonin Dolohov. He folded the page, tucked it in the pocket of his robes, stood and walked out into the snow.

He started towards the gates, but remembered that they wouldn't let him out. He wandered toward the forest. Then Umar was walking beside him.

"Cold."

"Yeah, I guess it is. We could go inside."

Umar nodded.

"Tony, you're not him."

Snow continued to fall around them, slowly covering everything beneath it.

"Thanks."

oOo

One Monday morning Tony and Umar were coming to the doors to the great hall for breakfast, when a commotion broke out inside. Umar took little notice and plodded on in, but Tony was knocked to the floor by James and Albus Potter, sprinting out like they were being pursued by a herd of angry hippogriffs. James was holding something red. They were halfway up the stairs when the red paper burst into flames, James dropped it with an "ow!" and a man's voice filled the hall.

"DAISIES, BOYS? IN FEBRUARY?" The voice boomed, "PROFESSOR HAGRID FOUND YOU A KILOMETER DEEP IN THE FORBIDDEN-THE _FORBIDDEN_ FOREST AND THE BEST ANSWER HE AND YOUR HEAD OF HOUSE COULD GET FROM YOU WAS THAT YOU WERE LOOKING FOR DAISIES?"

A woman's voice, with no less force, added, "I HOPE YOU DON'T THINK ANYONE BELIEVES YOU FOR A SECOND! AFTER FIVE AND A HALF YEARS OF GETTING LETTERS ABOUT YOU, JAMES, WE ARE ABSOLUTELY SICK OF IT!"

The man, who was undoubtedly their father, continued. "AND ALBUS, AT FOURTEEN YOU OUGHT TO HAVE MORE SENSE THAN TO FOLLOW HIM AROUND."

"-NOT TO MENTION TAKING ROSE WITH YOU-"

"-AND SCORPIUS MALFOY? HONESTLY? NOW IF I SEE HIS DAD AT THE MINISTRY I WILL HAVE TO APOLOGIZE FOR YOU LANDING HIM IN THE HOSPITAL WING."

"I AM SURPRISED NO ONE GOT MORE HURT. YOU KNOW IT IS DANGEROUS OUT THERE! WE WANT TO KNOW WHAT YOU WERE REALLY UP TO. IF THERE IS SOMETHING SERIOUS GOING ON, YOU NEED TO TELL NEVILLE."

"YOU HAVE TWENTY-FOUR HOURS TO TELL PROFESSOR LONGBOTTOM THE WHOLE STORY OR I WILL COME _GET_ THE TRUTH FROM YOU MYSELF."

With that the howler was reduced to ashes. James glared at Albus. "Lovely! Of course they think it was my idea. Daisies...it sounds so lame!"

"I didn't want to lie."

"But you didn't want to tell everything either. I'm going to tell Longbottom after class, sorry if that ruins your plans."

James headed up the stairs.

"Where are you going?" Asked Albus.

"Where are _you_ going?"

"Breakfast."

"Great. See you in detention."

Albus cleaned the scorch marks on the stairs with a spell and came back down, frowning. "What are you looking at?" He growled at Tony as he went past.

Tony had been intimidated by Lily's family before. Now he was doubly so.

oOo

He tried to stop himself from falling in love with her. But whenever he thought he had conquered his feelings, she would wave to him at dinner, or stop to talk to him in the corridor, and his heart would jump. Once Lily found him in an unused classroom practicing transfiguration, and she practiced with him until the desk was chasing its tail and the poor Great Dane didn't know which direction was up. They scratched the dog's ears and laughed as if there were no differences between them, but later when she walked into Defense Against the Dark Arts with Finnigan, Tony went back to acting like he didn't know her.

"We have an excellent opportunity today!" Professor Fenwick announced. "The house-elves found a boggart in a closet, so you will each take a turn doing the riddikulus spell. It works like so..."

Tony thought. What was he most afraid of? His father escaping Azkaban again? Maybe, but the Death Eater was so old now Tony doubted that would happen. Losing his mother? That would be terrible, but there was another fear that confronted him every day: the fear of being unworthy of the friends he desparately wanted. He was afraid of being unworthy of Lily. What form would a boggart take to illustrate that? A reflection of himself immersed in dark magic? How on earth could he make that funny?

Finnigan offered to try the boggart first. It turned into a bludger that whirled around his head so fast it was hardly visible, making the sound of a booing crowd. Finnigan shouted, "riddikulus!" and it turned into a watermelon that fell to the floor in two halves.

Lily stepped forward and the boggart turned into an old wizard Tony had seen pictures of—Dumbledore—with a strange white glow. He shook his head sadly. "The train will come, Lily, but you will have to stay here. The time for choice is past. You took the easy life that was handed to you and never had the courage to stand up for what you knew in your heart."

Lily took a deep breath, "riddikulus!" The figure of Dumbledore became more warm and solid, and said, "nitwit, blubber, oddments, squeak!" The class looked confused, but they laughed and the boggart moved on to another target.

Finally Tony had to step forward. He had no ideas other than to give the boggart a bowtie and make it tap dance; he would just have to see what happened. A lethifold that had become a frilly apron popped, and transformed into a towering man with a sharp lightning scar. It yelled in the booming voice Tony had heard from the howler in the front hall.

"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO MY DAUGHTER, ANTONIN DOLOHOV? HOW DARE YOU EVEN LOOK AT HER? YOU CARRY THE NAME OF A FILTHY, EVIL-"

Tony cringed and closed his eyes. This was the most respected wizard in the world; a bowtie and tap dancing was not going to happen. Furthermore, what he said was true and there was nothing funny about it.

Lily was at Tony's side. She shouted "riddikulus!" and the man changed into a truer likeness of Harry Potter: shorter, with softer lines on his face and his scar less noticeable. He grinned as if he was in the middle of telling a story.

"...but the Minister kept droning on and on. It was high time for the meeting to be over, so I snuck a puking pastille." He chuckled. "I got it all over his desk."

The class gasped with laughter. Even Tony had to smile at the idea. The boggart popped one last time and vanished.

Lily said, "The best part was that to make it convincing he stayed home in his pajamas for two days. We had a lovely time."

"You mean that actually happened?" Tony asked.

"Yeah." She smiled.

Professor Fenwick assigned them reading and dismissed the class. On Tony's way out she put a hand on his shoulder. "If you need help with anything, Mr. Dolohov, don't hesitate to ask me."

"Okay, thanks, Professor."

**Hey Reviewers! What do you think of Umar as a character? How about Tony-too pathetic, or is he ok? Is my comic relief effective?**

**One or two more chapters are in the works, and should be more up-beat. **


	3. Hopes

There were some students whose mistrust simply increased after the boggart story spread. Of course Dolohov is scared of Harry Potter, they said; Potter is the guy who puts dark wizards in Azkaban. Many people however, like Fenwick, had improved opinions. Professor Hagrid called on Tony at the first opportunity and praised him loudly, "tha's how it's done! Polly lets yeh harness 'er if yeh talk to 'er while putting it on nice and slow, jus' like Tony did there." When none of his fellow Hufflepuffs seemed hostile, Tony was surprised to find that he didn't mind the attention.

Snows were melted, Spring was beginning. It was a Saturday morning, and while most students were going to Hogsmeade Tony and Umar were sitting in greenhouse one, reading. It was a quiet place that smelled like moist soil, where Tony liked to be when it was still chilly outside. Tony didn't see any point in going to look at shops when he had no gold to spend.

Then they saw the silhouettes of a big noisy group walking outside the thin semi-translucent walls of the greenhouse.

"Why do we need to stop in here?"

"I want to see if..." Lily's voice trailed off as she pushed the door open. "Oh you are here, Tony, I thought you might be. Hi Umar."

"Hi Lily." Tony said. She was accompanied by the most popular and admired third and fourth year students, including her crazy-brilliant brother Albus, her very sane-brilliant cousin Rose Weasley and Rose's thin blonde boyfriend from Slytherin.

"I wanted to ask if you two would come to Hogsmeade with us."

Lizzie Fudge and Lucy Weasley nodded with encouragement. Only Liam Finnigan was making a face.  
>He said, "um..Lily..."<p>

"What?" She challenged.

"Why are you inviting Dolohov, and—" he didn't know Umar's name.

"Grime man." Offered Rose's boyfriend. Rose dropped his hand and looked at him as if he we was suddenly someone else. Umar of course, didn't seem to care.

"Liam," Lily said with effort, "I am actually really tired of you being rude. Tony is my friend."

"But we heard what your dad said about him."

"That was a boggart! Dad would never say that."

Liam wasn't satisfied. "But he fought a war against people like—"

"The war was against Voldemort." Said Lucy, rolling her eyes at Liam.

"And it was more," said Lily. "...it was against hate and...and prejudice...and..."

Rose stated, "The war was against judging any persons, beasts or beings based on their parentage. Uncle Harry would definitely never be angry with Dolohov because of his father."

"Thank you." Lily sighed.

"Plus," said Lizzie, "Tony's boggart was so romantic!"

Albus frowned. "Not necessarily. Consider Lily's boggart—she fears the disappointment of Dumbledore because to her he represents wisdom, power, goodness et cetera. A lot of people think of our dad like that too. So maybe," Albus looked at Tony as if trying to discern whether what he said was true, "maybe Tony's boggart wasn't about Lily; maybe it was fear of the anger of the whole community, or ultimate judgement."

It was definitely about Lily. Albus was right, though, that Tony saw Harry Potter as a symbol of power and goodness, which combined with being Lily's father, made him terrifying. The group looked at Tony with curiosity, but he didn't give them an explanation.

"Anyway," Lily tucked a bit of hair behind her ear. She was uncomfortable with the turn of the conversation. "will you come to Hogsmeade? It's the last trip of the year."

"I will, if you want to, Umar."

Umar shrugged, then nodded.

As they walked across the grounds, Tony noticed the scraggly base of a few daisy plants, barely visible because they were chewed short by Hagrid's winged foal, Polly. It was her favorite food and she had almost cleared it from the grounds. That reminded Tony of the howler. He asked Lily, "What was it that your brothers were doing, that time they got in trouble for being out in the forest?"

"Al was trying to brew Felix Felicis—liquid luck, you know—and needed daisy root."

"What did he want to use the luck potion for?"

Tony didn't realize Albus was listening to them, but he turned around with a frustrated look, as if he had been asked that question too many times. "I didn't have specific plans; I certainly don't need to cheat on exams. It looked like an amusing one to try, that's all. Of course now all my supplies are confiscated."

The blonde Slytherin snorted. "Your poor potions supplies, Al...what about my permanently scarred arm from that giant spider? We had more bad luck trying to make that than it would have been worth."

Finnigan whispered to himself, "scarred arm...that fits a Malfoy..." and in less than a second had a long elm-wood wand pointed between his eyes.

"Do you want to say that again?" The blonde demanded.

"Curse him, Scorpius, he's had it coming." Albus agreed, but the girls protested.

"Scorp, he's a little twerp but it's not worth the trouble!"

"Liam! That was uncalled for!"

"Not okay, Liam."

Tony made the mistake of muttering, "I don't get it." And everyone looked at him.

"Well, maybe if you talked to more people you would know some things, Dolohov." Said the boy named Scorpius with a sour face.

Lily explained regretfully, "Liam was referring to the scar of the dark mark. Scorpius' dad was a death eater, like yours."

Tony's mouth fell open. He had never even suspected that there was anyone else at Hogwarts, much less this well dressed and confident boy.

"Except _not_ like yours, because my dad never wanted to be a death eater. He never enjoyed torturing people!" Scorpius scoffed.

"That's not what I heard." Said Lizzie.

"Yeah? Well I've heard things about some of your relatives..."

Lizzie's face went red.

"Hey! I have ancestors who ate babies. Who cares?" Announced Umar. Everyone calmed down, but Rose had moved away from Scorpius to walk beside Lucy, and shot him a disappointed look.

"What is it, Rose?" Scorpius asked. She just kept walking. Albus put a hand on Scorpius' shoulder and stopped him to talk quietly while the group moved on. The result was that Scorpius stomped back to the castle and Albus caught up to them as they entered the village.

oOo

Tony enjoyed Hogsmeade more than he expected, drawn into a group that was, for the most part, very comfortable with each other. Liam remained fairly quiet.

Honeydukes was their first stop. Then they went to Weasley Wizard Wheezes, which was emitting bangs and whistles, and so packed with Hogwarts students that Umar shook his head and turned away. Tony stayed outside with him. Umar preferred calm and quiet, and Tony sympathized with that. Besides, he wasn't keen to meet any of Lily's uncles yet. Tony was startled when the group came out talking to each other in deep bass voices. Lily chuckled, sounding like Hagrid. Albus' voice was the most impressive. He made a wide sweep of his hand, presenting Tony and Umar a bottle of something bluish. "Grrrummble-Plumm Rumm... Troy summ!"

After looking in to the Quidditch supply shop their voices gradually rose to normal and the group decided to eat lunch at The Three Broomsticks. Tony remembered that he didn't bring money, and made the excuse of wanting to explore more, telling them to go in without him. Umar shrugged, saying effectively, "I would go with you but I'm hungry", so Tony continued up the street himself. He was quickly joined by Lily, however, who claimed she didn't feel like eating.

"Besides, I need a new hairbrush. Mine melted...long story...do you mind if we stop at Belinda's?"

After wandering up to the Shrieking Shack and leisurely down High Street again, talking about exams and quidditch, Lily pointed to a small shop. _Belinda's_ was written over the door in graceful silver cursive.

Inside, Tony felt completely out of place. Everything was smooth clean glass or intricate silver. Bottles of potions labeled "instant painless wart remover" or "perfect shine shampoo" were arranged by color on the shelves and a couple of older girls were browsing nail-polish. Tony hoped it wouldn't take Lily long to choose a hairbrush.

His quick escape was not to be. A gorgeous witch with long black and orange curls came from the back and right over to Tony. She smiled at him with warm, genuine interest.

"Hello! You are a puzzle. But I think with a haircut and a few hints you could have a prize portrait."

Tony just stared at her.

"A galleon and sixteen sickles for hair treatment and consultation. Yes?" Her voice was as silvery and clear as the mirrors along the walls of her shop.

"Oh. Thank you, but no, madam."

She sighed, disappointed. Then a younger witch came from the back, hands on hips. "Belinda, the knot-grass arrived dried up again."

"Again? Awhh..."

Tony recognized the opportunity. "My mother sells knot-grass. She lives just south of London."

Belinda's expression brightened. "Does she? We use it in several products, and we have tried so many different sellers...I would be so relieved to find a reliable one. Here is a deal. You let me fix your hair, and write down your mother's address for me, and I will give her a visit!"

Tony wasn't sure who was getting the better deal, but she seemed so eager to cut his hair, and mother needed more customers. He agreed, and looked helplessly at Lily as Belinda led him to a chair by the mirrored wall of the shop and opened a cupboard to reveal a water basin and array of combs, clippers and potions.

Twenty minutes later Tony's hair looked like someone else's: clean and sharp. The skin on his face was clear, and Belinda had even pointed her wand at his robes and made them fit better and look freshly sewn. "That robe fix will wear off, but I want you to walk out of here looking ck! perfect. There."

Belinda turned Tony around to face Lily. "Look sweetheart, your boyfriend looks like new, hmm?"

Lily cocked her head. "Your hair is shorter. But you look the same." Then she blushed. "I mean, he is not my boyfriend."

"He looks the same eh?" Belinda laughed. "Meaning you have always seen him like this. A girl in love often sees potential, not reality! Oh you two are as red as cherries! I'm sorry." She laughed again as Lily payed for her hairbrush.

Belinda bullied Tony into taking a couple free potions with him. "Just tell your friends where you got them." She said.

They left, not looking at each other.

oOo

Tony was embarrassed when they walked past some sixth years ouside of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and James Potter glared at him.

The next day he was embarrassed when Wendy Miller, the fifth year prefect, sat down next to him with a playful smile and asked his name and why he had snuck into their common room. She sprang up from the couch and apologized when he explained that he was, and always had been, Tony Dolohov.

However, he was even more embarrassed on Tuesday in the Great Hall when he saw his picture on the cover of Witch Weekly. Someone tossed him a copy. The cover photo looked like it had been taken from inside the window of the tea shop across the street from Belinda's. It was framed in lace curtains, and showed Lily and Tony walking in and out of the salon holding hands (which they had not been doing, but which Tony at least, would have liked) His appearance alternated each time they went in and out, between the old greasy Tony and the new clean-cut Tony.

Did he dare read the article?

_Children of the Hero: a disturbing inside look at the three young Potters. By Rita Skeeter._

_In spite of his questionable past, Harry Potter is almost universally revered as the greatest hero of the times. The fame of the Potter name has lent inflated success to his own career and his wife Ginevra's, whose bland coverage of Quidditch has never reflected the true madness and corruption in the sports arena. Indeed, the parents bask in fame, but meanwhile their children are struggling to break free of the Potter mold. James, who approaches his last year at Hogwarts, is well known as a trouble-maker, but his recklessness seems innocent compared to the dark and dangerous dabblings of his younger siblings, Albus and Lily._

_These adolescents consider themselves above normal rules of order and decency. James has on his record tampering with school property, smuggling contraband items, sneaking off school grounds, and bullying other students. He has gone so far as to launch a classmate, Beau Kreappie, into the Hogwarts lake. Says Kreappie, "Potter is totally uncivilized. The only reason he hasn't been expelled is because he is famous. Being famous, or good at Quidditch, doesn't make up for being a jerk, and he probably cheats at Quidditch as much as he does in class."_

_In fact, it is certain that he cheats at Quidditch, given that he and his brother were caught brewing felix felicis._

_That brings us to the brother, Albus. "Wand of elder, never prosper," they say, and if his unusual elder wood and Phoenix feather wand is not enough to ignite suspicion, the fourteen-year-old himself is showing strange and insatiable ambitions. Unlike his attention-seeking father and brother, Albus spends many hours alone reading and experimenting with advanced and dangerous magic. Mrs. Potter has been overheard complaining that instead of writing to his family he corresponds with witches and wizards as far as Japan, India, and Alaska. Is he attempting to distance himself from his family, and if so, is he distancing himself from the pristine Potter values as well? We should not be surprised to see this mysterious, uprising young wizard cross crucial boundaries in his pursuit of individual power._

_Perhaps the most shocking of all, is the violent and rebellious nature of the little sister. Lily, she is named, but she is hardly lily-sweet..._

Tony put the article down. Lily, violent? How could anyone publish that kind of lie?

..._Her friends describe her as "a bold and agile seeker" and "a champion dueler." She has been known to lash out without explanation at a simple beetle on a garden bench. Furthermore, her loyalties have been diverted: at the young age of thirteen she is now entangled in a passionate romance with none other than Antonin Dolohov, Jr., the only son of the murderous Death Eater. Even disguised cosmetically, this boy is far from good-looking. He is anti-social and untalented. What does Lily Potter see in him? Maybe a reflection of her own interest in dark magic. Maybe an escape from her family's expectations._

_If duty requires Harry Potter to take action against his own children, will we see his resolve falter? Will the magical community continue to adore the Potters as the family falls apart from within?_

Tony was angry with himself. He knew his own reputation was hopeless. He shouldn't have let himself be seen anywhere with Lily, to bring these kinds of insults upon her. That day in Hogsmeade had been a mistake. He shouldn't have hoped.

Someone sat down next to him at the table.

"Hi Umar." Tony said without looking.

"Nope."

Tony looked up at James Potter, who was followed by Albus.

"Oh, sorry..."

"No problem." Said James. "Hey, I see you read the Skeeter article. Don't worry about it ok? She's always writing nargle dung about someone, and half the time it's us. Sorry you got dragged into this one."

"I'm sorry too, for...being there. "

Albus shook his head, "You have a right to be—" but James interrupted him.

"Glad to know there wasn't anything behind it..." Then he released the bludger: "'cause if you really were moving in on our sister we would have to toss you in the lake like we did to Beau Kreappie." He laughed casually and patted Tony on the back.

"See you. Come on Al."

Albus added, "don't open any mail if you don't know who it's from," which turned out to be a good suggestion over the next week as owls dropped various threats and poisons at the back of the Hufflepuff table.


	4. Sanctions

Tony held to his resolve and avoided Lily for the remaining weeks of the term, and then had a peaceful summer, writing to Umar and helping his mother meet orders from an increased number of customers, thanks to Belinda.

When fourth year started, however, Lily seemed equally determined not to let Tony avoid her. She claimed the seat next to him in Potions, came to talk to him in the great hall at meals, and one weekend invited him and Umar to have tea at Hagrid's cabin with her.

"You have tea with Professor Hagrid...just for fun?"

"Hagrid's our dad's friend, so he likes us to visit sometimes. He is actually the first wizard dad met..." She told Tony the story of the hut on the rock. It was strange to think of Harry Potter as ever being a scared, unsuspecting boy. Tony didn't want to hurt her feelings and he liked Hagrid, so he agreed to go. Umar had no objections to coming along.

They met at the front doors. It was a mild autumn evening with a bright half-moon and crisp leaves that Lily jumped on. Her energy and cheerfulness was so delightful, Tony couldn't help but feel light at heart. He still wasn't going to give anyone reason to think she was attached to him, but she had always been so kind to him, he wanted to return her friendship. He would let himself enjoy this one visit.

They watched the growing winged foal, Polly, fly over the castle. They laughed when Umar practiced a summoning charm and got half-burried in a swarm of leaves. Even the trees of the forest seemed to chuckle happily in the breeze as Tony, Umar and Lily passed by them.

Then two harsh voices shouted in unison, "_Expelliarmus_!" And all three of their wands flew out of their hands and into the shadows beneath the trees. Before Tony could think, the voices grated, "_silencio_"

"_consuscipio leviosa."_

Tony felt his body restricted, as if wrapped in a tight blanket, and raised eerily a foot off the ground. He opened his mouth to scream but no sound came out. Looking around he saw that Lily and Umar were held up in similar positions.

Then they began to drift toward the trees, completely helpless as they were sucked into the dark.

They were pushed along, concealed inside the edge of the forest, hovering in front of two hooded and cloaked figures. One seemed a normal adult height, while the other was impossibly tall and thin and walked with an unusual gait, sinking and rising with each step. They had both spoken in raspy voices that seemed half human.

At the base of the large willow tree that students avoided, (Tony had seen it snatch a stray quaffle once) they stopped. The shorter hooded figure used Umar's wand to shoot a spell at the base of the tree and the branches froze, no longer creaking in the breeze.

Tony and his friends were levitated toward the tree, and then down into a hole at the base of it. The tunnel was pitch black, lighted only by a glow of illumination from Lily's wand in the hand of their taller captor.

"You three are exactly what we need," he, or it, rasped as they drifted along. "Don't worry, we made the two Potter boys tell Hagrid you would not be coming for tea. No one will be looking for you."

The tunnel opened into an old and battered room, scarcely furnished and boarded at the windows. In the center of the floor a cauldron of glowing yellow-green liquid simmered. It was not a potion Tony knew.

"The twelfth night add the blood of three; One must die, two must go free..." Croaked the voices together. "Unless the one will choose to live, And all his magic freely give."

"We have our three." said the tall figure, whose face, if it had one, was still completely shrouded in its hood. "And now we need you to help us make a choice, young Antonin Dolohov."

The shorter figure etched a diamond on the floor with a motion of its wand. As it did so, Umar suddenly struggled wildly, fell landing on his feet, and ran at the tall figure, bellowing like a rhinoceros.

"_Stupify_!" Shot the tall figure, and Umar was thrown back. He fell unconscious on the floor.

"Why did you let him down?" The tall phantom-like figure demanded in its raspy voice.

"I didn't mean to. I guess the spell wore off." the shorter one replied.

"Half the village no doubt heard him. We will need to put up defenses now."

"Shall we just leave him unconscious?"

"Yes, I think that might be best."

Then they shot a pair of charms into the air; the house they were in would be muffled and shielded.

"I will keep an eye on him, and keep the girl restrained, if you will pay attention to the defenses." calculated the tall figure. "Perhaps just in case..._incarcerous_." Umar was bound in magical ropes.

Then it looked at Lily. "_jubilithe_." As she continued to hover with her arms pinned to her sides, contentment replaced the distress on her face. "Now she won't struggle."

"Are we ready?" The short one rasped.

"Yes." replied the tall one. "Dolohov, we are going to set you down in this diamond. Step out of it, and we will kill Lily Potter."

Tony's feet touched the floor and he was released. Dizzy, he almost stumbled, but managed to stay standing. He felt like the diamond where he stood was the top of a thin towering precipice, and if he moved he would fall to a crushing end.

"Good, now keep being careful. Remember we have the girl in our power. You have your father's chin, by the way, Dolohov." Said the short figure.

Tony didn't reply.

The tall one croaked, "The potion you see will give us, all three of us, great power. With the death of one and the blood of two it will be complete. We will be able to free our friends, your father and others, from Azkaban and take our revenge."

"Three of us? Me, help you? Never!"

"What? Only a small cup of your blood, boy. You don't want your father free?"

"I'm the last person who wants my father free."

The two figures looked at each other. The tall one spoke again, "why is that?"

"Well he isn't...he isn't the nice dad type, is he?" Tony said.

"Hmm...then you are not with us."

"I will never be with you!" Tony insisted.

"In that case, you still have a choice. We can drain Lily Potter's magic into our potion, to her death—"

"No! Don't touch Lily!" Tony looked at her, still hovering with a gentle calm countenance. At least they weren't making her suffer, yet.

"Aha! Do you love her?"

"Yes."

Lily looked at him. The smile brightened on her face, and she silently formed the word, "Tony."

"Then hear your choices. Her magic is the strongest of you three, and we would relish taking the daughter of our old enemy. However, your magic is also strong. If you gave it willingly you would live through the process, and it would make our potion more potent. Giving it willingly would be very painful, but after taking a small cup of blood from those two, we would have to let all three of you go free. We would alter your memories, and you Dolohov, the last of the pure Dolohov line, could live your life as a muggle. It would be a disappointing fate, but we will let you decide." The raspy voice ceased and there was silence.

They had to be lying. They wanted Tony to give his magic through some mysterious painful process, but if it would give them such great power, what was to stop them from killing Lily after that? If it was simply a choice between Lily's life and his, he would save her without hesitation, but he didn't trust these creatures. How could he stop them from hurting Lily, and also prevent them from gaining the power they wanted? If he could buy enough time and keep them talking, there was a chance that help would come. That was his best option.

Tony spoke, "tell me how this works. What power will this give you, exactly?"

The shorter one scoffed, "That doesn't matter. We will succeed no matter what you choose, so make your choice."

"If I give it willingly, your power will be stronger? Significantly?"

"Yes."

"But if you have to take it, and I die, then it would be weaker than Lily's, and only one of us can die...the others have to go free?"

"That is what we said." Answered the shorter one.

Then it took a small vial of red potion from inside its cloak and drank a mouthful.

"Me too." Croaked the tall one, and they shared it.

"What is that?" Tony asked. "Who are you?"

"No more questions." Said the tall one. He aimed his wand at Lily. "Does the girl die? Or do you give us the power of your own magic?"

Tony made his choice. He couldn't be sure that they really would let Lily and Umar go, but it was the best chance he could give them.

"I will die." He said, and suddenly he felt more confident than he could remember feeling for a long time.

"What? We didn't say—"

"I am sure as dragon fire not going to let you hurt Lily, but I'm not going to give you more power than I have to, either."

The two looked at him in silence.

"If you do get my father out of prison," Tony continued, "tell him from me that he is disgusting, and that if he goes near mother I will come back to haunt him."

With that declaration, Tony took a last look at Lily's tranquil lovely face, closed his eyes, and wondered what death felt like.

**Note:**

**Don't say I didn't warn you. The title _is_ a reference to Romeo and Juliet after all!**

**Thanks for reviewing! There will be a final chapter.**


	5. Summaries

CRASH!

All at once several spells were cast into the room.

"_Expelliarmus_!" Wands flew from the hands and pockets of their cloaked captors.

"_Silencio_."

"_Incarcerous_." The dark figures toppled to their knees as ropes wound around their wrists and ankles...though the ropes seemed to find the taller one's ankles halfway up its calves and its feet appeared as narrow hoof-like appendages.

Tony turned around to see three people rush through an opening that had been broken at the window. One looked very much like Lily: her mother. Another was a young man with navy blue hair, and the third was Lily's father.

The blue-haired man went to Umar, released his bindings and brought him to consciousness.

Mrs. Potter ran first to Lily, lowered her gently to her feet and removed the cheering charm. She held her daughter in an embrace while understanding of the situation seeped back into Lily's countenance.

Lily reached out a hand to Tony. He stepped out of the diamond and clasped it.

Mr. Potter was standing over the two hooded figures. "You two are under arrest for kidnapping. I could charge you with attempted murder, even though that was obviously not your intention. Kidnapping is serious enough, though; you're facing at least a year in Azkaban no matter what excuse you give the judges, and yes, I know who you are."

Lily asked shakily, "You know who they are, Dad?"

Mrs. Potter held up two of the wands they had claimed, saying "you know them too, Lily." Lily must have recognized the wands; her face changed from confusion to furor. She rushed to the closest prisoner and kicked it, shouting, "That wasn't funny at all!" then tore off its hood and veil.

It was her brother, James, looking only mildly sorry.

The blue haired man made a surprised little choking sound, then asked, "Harry, should I?" At a nod from Mr. Potter he unhooded the tall thin one, Albus.

Albus moved his mouth like he wanted to speak, but Mr. Potter shook his head. "You can plead innocent in court. You put your sister and her friends under extreme stress and we are not going to smooth it over."

Court? Even just as a witness, Tony didn't like the thought of standing in front of a mass of officials, or being in the news.

"Mr. Potter," said Tony, "I wouldn't have to participate in that, would I?"

"Well...you were the only witness that was fully conscious." Then his expression softened. "You've been through enough, Tony—"

Why would Harry Potter call him by his first name?

"—and the offense was against you. If you would rather not press charges, then we won't."

"I would rather not."

The brothers beamed at him. Tony turned away to hide his annoyance. He didn't want to go to court; that didn't mean he had appreciated being interrogated in their pseudo-nightmare. They were being a bit dull if they thought they were on good terms with anyone in the shack at that moment.

Mrs. Potter said, "They owe you, Tony, and may I add that what you said before we came in was quite impressive?"

"Agreed," said the blue-haired man with admiration, "you were ready to die, Dolohov, that can't be easy!"

"It's not," said Mr. Potter, "but he probably doesn't want to talk about it just yet, Teddy."

Teddy replied, "I don't see why James and Al put this on, though, what were they trying to do?"

"Explain that, boys." said Mrs. Potter, wordlessly pointing her wand at them to dispel their gags.

James spoke in a voice with just a bit of a rasp, as if he had a sore throat, "We were looking out for Lily. She and Dolohov were obviously getting close; we had to make sure he was good."

Mr. Potter said, "well, at least you succeeded at that!"

"Of course we succeeded," smiled Albus, "We had luck on our side."

Their parents rolled their eyes. "I take it you found daisy plants, then? I hope you didn't break rules to get them, Sir Prefect."

"I didn't find plants exactly," said Albus, "but I talked to Uncle George; the main ingredient in rasp-berry sherry is daisy root. It has a shrinking effect—constricts the vocal chords."

"So you mixed them?" Mrs. Potter asked incredulously, "and you just assumed that would work?"

"I analyzed and tested it first, Mum!" said Albus defensively. "Ferret got into the kitchens and back with two cans of sardines in three minutes. I don't even know why they had sardines, they're never in meals."

"That explains why you two are acting so pleased with yourselves, and the astounding coincidence that Teddy was patrolling here at just that moment..." commented Mr. Potter.

"So now I can go down in history as the wizard who discovered that felix felicis can be flavored with raspberry!"

"Back to the point, is there a reason you decided you needed to make this so dramatic?" Asked Mrs. Potter.

"We had to make it seem real, right? It seemed like the thing to do." said James.

"We specifically said Tony didn't have to die; sorry Tony, we didn't expect you to take it that far, though you were pretty inspiring..." said Albus.

"I wish someone would pretend to capture me so I could be so heroic!" added James.

"And I'm sorry I stunned you, Umar, hope you're not hurt."

"I'm fine." said Umar

"So, Mum and Dad, can we have these ropes off?" Asked James.

With a flick of Mr. Potter's wand the ropes dissolved.

Albus shifted and removed a pair of flexible stilts that were strapped to his feet. James pulled up his pant leg to look at a bruise forming where Lily had kicked him.

"I'll forgive that, Lily," he said pleasantly, "if you promise to marry that kid, because he is awesome."

"_You'll_ forgive _me_, if I—" Lily bristled, turning red.

"James!" Mrs. Weasley scolded. "She is far too young to make that decision and you have no say in it at all."

Tony sighed. He was tired.

"I'll walk back to the castle with you three." Suggested Mrs. Potter. "Shall I meet you back at home, Harry? Oh, and Teddy, Victoire wants a formal proposal, something planned and nice."

As Tony, Lily, Umar and Mrs. Potter climbed down into the tunnel, Mr. Potter turned to his sons.

"Do you understand why that kind of intimidation is unethical?"

"We were making sure Lily—"

"No Al, the ends don't justify the means..."

They were out of hearing. Now that they each had their own wand the tunnel was much brighter. Lily took Tony's hand as they walked, until her mother cleared her throat.

"You are young, you know." She said, "You may want to wait before you make any commitments. Not that we don't approve of you, Tony, we have heard good things about you."

"You have?"

"From Hagrid, Neville...mostly from Lily, yes we have, not to mention the courage we saw just now."

Tony wasn't sure if the adults had heard him declare that he loved Lily, but at any rate her brothers had, so there was no hiding it.

"You care about each other, but that doesn't necessarily mean you're right for each other." Mrs. Potter carried on, in spite of Lily making faces, "You have a lot of learning and growing still to do. I won't insist on anything, but I will suggest that you make a lot of different friends before pairing off, and don't be surprised if the first person you like is not the right match for you."

Tony couldn't imagine loving anyone but Lily, but he nodded.

oOo

It was a garden. Close to the burrow, it had been one of Lily's favorite places since she was small, and now it was washed with mid-morning sunlight and arrayed with summer lilies.

Tony looked around at the people. For each face he could remember the moments that had grown into relationships. James and Al gave him a mock salute; they had taken to doing that ever since the rather terrifying trick they played to decide if he was good enough for their sister.

Behind them were Rose and Lucy Weasley, who had helped Tony study to pass his Transfiguration OWL and had explained to him once, when he found a certain scrap of parchment, that a girl doodles her first name with a boy's last name not when she is trying desperately to make a bad last name look better, but when she already likes it.

Next to Lucy was Alberta Peasegood, who, like many at Hogwarts, had been so impressed by the story the Potters spread about the shrieking shack incident, she kept wanting to talk to Tony and make him part of her group of friends. Tony had struggled to adjust at first—people wanted to talk to him and he just didn't have anything to say—but after a year or two he found himself comfortable with his social status. He never did fit snugly into one posse of friends though; he preferred the freedom to be around different people, be alone if he wished, sit with whichever first year seemed lonely, and of course, stick with Umar. Tony had taken Mrs. Potter's advice and not dated Lily until he had spent time around other girls; Alberta in particular had wanted to date Tony during their fifth year, but she was now happily holding hands with Umar. Umar gave Tony a nod.

Then there were the rest of Lily's aunts, uncles and cousins. Tony remembered being invited to a Weasley family reunion the summer after their sixth year. He had been nervous, but once he got there had felt great and made a spectacular impression on the family (he found out later Al and James had spiked his lemonade with Felix).

His own mother was quietly wiping away a tear, smiling at Tony proudly. It thrilled Tony to see her so happy. Beside her was Mrs. Potter, and Tony remembered two nights ago, when they had stayed up late preparing decorations and Mrs. Potter had finally gotten Nadia Dolohov to talk about her past and her feelings. Now they stood together as friends. Mrs. Potter wasn't teary but Grandma Weasley was, and Tony remembered crying together with her over the graves of her brothers, Gideon and Fabian Prewett.

In the front there was Harry Potter. Tony was still a little in awe of him and probably always would be, but Tony knew he could trust Mr. Potter. He remembered the time he had been called to the Head Auror's office when he thought his life was over. He had been one of the first applicants cut from auror training, but Mr. Potter had assured him that just because Lily thought being an auror was the only worthwhile career, didn't mean there weren't other places where Tony's talents would make more of a difference. Mr. Potter had given him contact information for Madame Susan Bones at St. Mungo's and Tony was now on his way to becoming a successful healer.

At last, there was Lily. Her red hair flowed gracefully over the sleeves of her long white dress. Her face was all happiness. Petals of apple blossom floated down from somewhere in the sky, though it was the season for fruit. Lily had practiced walking gracefully up the aisle, but now she picked up her skirt and ran on barefoot up to claim Tony's hand. Tony certainly had many memories of her, but now he thought of the future. There was a whole life ahead for Tony and Lily Dolohov.

oOo

**Notes:**

**Thanks for reading! I had a lot of fun writing this. Are there any of Tony's recollections from this wedding scene that you would like to see written out as stories?**

**If you liked it check out a couple stories that go with it: A New Perspective, and Wands**


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